Video conference systems provide a much needed functionality to users. Participants across the globe can hold meetings face-to-face, share data, make presentations, etc. without the need for multiple people to travel long distances. While video conference systems typically provide reliable and satisfactory experience to users, many such systems require sophisticated and expensive equipment. Also referred to as video telecommunication devices (VTCs), video conference systems are typically a closed system within a communication system. They may operate on standard protocols for signaling and audio/video, but may still have a large degree of variances with signaling.
On the other hand, multimodal, online communication applications such as Skype® and Skype For Business® by MICROSOFT CORPORATION of Redmond, Wash., provide a much more reasonable (in terms of complication and cost) alternative to complex video conference systems. However, online communication applications are typically directed to a user experience that involves the user's computer display and its peripherals, thus, not lending themselves to conference room type environments.